Good morning from Memphis, where the two governor candidates are prepping for a debate and mental health may be an issue in the Phil Trenary shooting. But first...

When Donald Trump last visited the Memphis area in 2016, former president of Mexico Vicente Fox had just derided Trump's claims Mexico would pay for a border wall.

Then-candidate Trump, addressing a crowd of about 10,000 in a Millington airport hangar, characteristically replied that the wall "just got 10 feet taller." Cue the cheers.

Well, President Trump is working to build a different wall this time — what Republican U.S. Senate candidate Marsha Blackburn called a "red wall" during a rally in Johnson City yesterday. "I know that the Democrats keep saying that there is a blue wave coming but let me tell you something, Mr. President, when that blue wave gets to the state line, it is going to run smack dab into the great red wall," Blackburn said, not mentioning polls showing her and Democrat Phil Bredesen neck-and-neck for Sen. Bob Corker's seat.

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President Trump held a rally in Johnson City Monday night to gather support for Bill Lee and Marsha Blackburn.
Angela Gosnell, Knoxville News Sentinel

With a slim 51-49 majority, the loss of that seat and the one currently held by Mississippi GOP Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith could give Democrats control of the Senate — although still a long shot, considering Democrats are defending 26 seats to the GOP's nine.

So, the stakes are high for Trump as he heads to Southaven tonight to rally support for Hyde-Smith, who was appointed this year to succeed Thad Cochran. She faces challenges from Democrats Mike Espy and Tobey Bartee and Republican Chris McDaniel on Nov. 6. As our Katie Fretland notes, McDaniel won DeSoto County "bigly" when he unsuccessfully ran for the Senate in 2014.

Mississippi Republican Cindy Hyde-Smith, left, is welcomed as the newest member of the U.S. Senate by Vice President Mike Pence, right, as she is joined by her husband, Michael Smith, center, and Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant, far left, during a ceremonial swearing-in at the Old Senate Chamber, Monday, April 9, 2018, in the Capitol in Washington. She was appointed by Mississippi Gov. Bryant to succeed Sen. Thad Cochran, R-Miss., who resigned in April for health reasons. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) ORG XMIT: DCJM101(Photo11: Jacquelyn Martin, AP)

So, what can we expect? I'm watching for three topics, in particular:

Will Trump kill two birds with one stone? The rally is on the Tennessee-Mississippi border, so expect lots of Republicans to head south, despite tonight's governor candidates debate between Democrat Karl Dean and Republican Bill Lee at the University of Memphis. But will Trump address Blackburn's race as well? Republican operatives with knowledge of the rally tell me Trump is supposed to stick to Hyde-Smith — although Trump isn't known for sticking to his script.

More defenses of Kavanaugh? Supreme Court pick Brett Kavanaugh is in trouble after he was publicly accused of sexual assault, and Trump has risen to the defense of his nominee's character. Trump could go after Democrats or the FBI — or even Kavanaugh's three accusers, including Christine Blasey Ford, who testified last week.

China in the cross-hairs? Trump yesterday announced an update of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which will be renamed the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), giving him a big and much-needed win on trade policy. With that dispute out of the way, Trump could refocus on China. If he ramps up criticism of China tonight, that could give credence to the theory that a showdown is coming.

The rally starts at 6:30 p.m. at the Landers Center, with the doors open at 3:30 p.m. Get more details on attending the event here. Also, watch for our live updates throughout today as we cover what's happening in and around the rally.

Lee, Dean face off: The only Tennessee governor debate in Memphis happens tonight, doors closing at 5:30 p.m., at the Rose Theatre at the University of Memphis. And with the Nov. 6 election less than a month away, expect Democrat Karl Dean and Republican Bill Lee to come out swinging.

At this point, given his substantial lead in the polls, Lee's goal is probably to avoid any major missteps, especially in front of a crowd that could be skewed in favor of Dean thanks to Trump's nearby rally tonight.

Democrat Karl Dean, left, and Republican Bill Lee face each other in the Nov. 6 governor's election.(Photo11: The Tennessean)

The main topic will probably be health care, and whether the state should expand Medicaid. Dean, who is in favor of expansion, will likely argue that the expansion will help Tennesseans and qualify the state for more federal health care dollars, while Lee will argue expansion would likely lead to cost overruns, especially as federal subsidies dry up as Trump and Republicans in Congress bleed out the Affordable Care Act.

Mental health questions raised in Trenary shooting: The families of the three people charged with allegedly murdering Greater Memphis Chamber chief executive Phil Trenary last week said they were shocked and grieved at the news, according to this article from our Linda Moore.

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Surveillance video shows Phil Trenary walking on South Front Street as well as the white truck believed to have been used in his shooting.
Memphis Commercial Appeal

McKinney Wright Jr., Racanisha Wright and Quandarius Richardson were charged with first-degree murder, but it sounds like there's a question of whether mental health played a role: Wright Jr., 22, "has the mind of an 14-year old," the family told Linda.

Wright's mother, Celesteine Wright, said he was born four months early, weighed only 1 pound and is developmentally delayed. She asked his aunt to raise him, but she has always been a part of his life.

"He ain't got no grown man's mind. He's got a child's mind," said Celesteine Wright, who is also the aunt of 16-year-old co-defendant Racanisha Wright.

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Wright's family speaks about McKinney Wright Jr., who has been charged with first-degree murder in connection with the death of Phil Trenary.
Memphis Commercial Appeal

Maybe mental health played a role in the shooting. Maybe it didn't. But regardless, receiving mental health care in Tennessee is a persistent problem, one that deserves more attention from state and local elected officials. Our Nicole Harris wrote this back in May, citing a 2017 report: "In Tennessee, 19.8 percent of adults 26 and older have experienced some sort of mental health issue. Out of 50 states, we are in the bottom 10." And childhood trauma plays a big role in behavioral and mental health issues.

As part of the Safe Schools Act, the state is giving $35 million to schools, including $4 million for Shelby County Schools. SCS isn't saying yet how it will spend the money, but it should do like other school districts and use some of those dollars on mental health.

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The president and CEO of the Greater Memphis Chamber of Commerce was killed Thursday night in a shooting on South Front Street in Downtown Memphis.
Jason Munz, Southern Miss Sports Writer

Linda also included a moving statement from Trenary's family:

"Thursday night, our beloved Phil Trenary was tragically taken from us. Our hearts are heavy with sorrow and grief as we try to make sense of what happened. Phil loved and was deeply committed to our family and the City of Memphis. We miss him and are heartened that Phil’s legacy will live on through his extraordinary civic, community and business contributions to the transformation of Memphis and the state of Tennessee. We want his remarkable vision for the growth and development of a thriving Memphis to continue to live on. The outpouring of love and support from the community has helped sustain us through this process. At this time, we ask for respect for our privacy as we begin to cope with the immeasurable loss we have all suffered."

Indian Past: The Madison Avenue restaurant Indian Pass near Midtown's Overton Square is closed, the Memphis Business Journal reports. (To give credit where it's due, "Indian Past" was a joke first made by Twitter user @jensized.)

The Fadeout: Last night, The Orpheum announced Leon Bridges would play the theater at 7 p.m. April 24, with tickets on sale this Friday, starting at $39.50. Bridges, who shot to fame with the release of his first album Coming Home in 2015, released

Reach Ryan Poe at poe@commercialappeal.com and on Twitter at @ryanpoe.